Ireland: Octogenarian sexual offender accused of preying on 65 women shot dead, home set on fire

Castlebar: An old man who had been accused of 65 sexual offences was shot and killed in his rural home. Only four days before he was fatally shot in his house on the outskirts of Castlebar, Co. Mayo, Ireland, on Sunday night, John Brogan had been exonerated of 20 of the charges. The 83-year-murderer old’s allegedly set fire to Brogan’s home before fleeing the scene in an effort to hide proof. A suspect was detained and is being questioned by the Gardai at Castlebar Garda station shortly after Brogan’s corpse was found. Just a few days before he passed away, on Wednesday afternoon, Brogan was cleared of 20 charges of past sexual assault. He was accused of sexually assaulting a lady between March 2004 and March 2009, between the ages of 64 and 69, according to the allegations. Four of the charges against him were reportedly dropped by the judge, and a jury found him innocent of the 16 others. It is known that Brogan will be tried by a jury and a judge for an extra 45 sexual assault charges later this year, though. Sources have verified that he was charged with eight counts of allegedly assaulting a woman sexually, more than 40 years ago. Additionally, he was charged with 37 additional lewd assaults. The 37 claimed indecent assaults against females occurred between 1982 and 1991. And the eight allegations of sexual attack are said to have occurred between January 1991 and October 1992. When Brogan arrived in court in Mayo last October, the judge informed him that he was being sent to the circuit court, meaning a jury trial. He was informed of the date he would go on trial for the remaining counts when he was scheduled to appear at the beginning of July. If found guilty, he could spend up to 14 years in jail. Detectives from the Garda Technical Bureau were on the crime scene till Tuesday morning, and the home was closed off while they searched for leads.